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Chicago Skyline Pen & Inks #168Z

Chicago skyline #871A brown pen & ink cityscape drawing of east Randolph skyscrapers.

This article is about the Chicago skyline pen & inks, which is for sale at discount with prints by artist Stephen F. Condren, BFA-SAIC, of Condren Galleries, a Fine Arts Gallery, offering JPEG & PDF scans. No other medium better expresses the landscape of a city than pen & inks. The elements of a skyline are architectural and thus lend themselves to delineation. The clean clear lines show all the intricate details of the buildings. The get the proper tones of shade and shadow hatching and cross-hatching is employed.

Hatching and Cross-Hatching For Chicago Skyline Pen & Inks

Since pen & inks do not make use of water to cast shadows the use of hatching is employed to provide this affect. Hatching is the process of carefully moving the pen & ink lines closely together all parallel to each other. This “screen” or “grid” is the matrix of the shade and shadowing process. The darker that you want the background to be the closer you make the lines. When you want to make things very dark such as in a sunset or night scene you make use of cross-hatching. This is where you drawing the pen & ink lines perpendicular to each other. This makes a screen like affect on the drawing and is very effective.

Architecture for Chicago Skyline Pen & Inks

The subject of skylines is architecture and the line is the backbone of this great topic. The pen & inks better than any other medium bring out the boldness of the cities great architecture. Pencils are excellent but they lack the boldness. Watercolors and oils are good as well but fall short when it come to delineation. It is the power and strength of the pen & inks that set the stage for outstanding architectural renderings and illustrations. When you have sections of a scene that require a lot of fine detail the pen & inks come to the rescue. With razor like accuracy the pen & inks zoom in on the details that you are seeking and produce them with clarity.

Chicago Skyline Art Link

Chicago skyline art

Related Links

Chicago skyline drawings, Chicago skyline of the near north side,

Stephen F. Condren ~ Artist

312-303-0207

School of the Art Institute of Chicago ~ BFA

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Chicago Skyline Art #163Z

Chicago skyline #1449A pen & ink cityscape watercolor reflecting in the waters of Lake Michigan with views of the near north side

This article is about Chicago skyline art, which is for sale at discount with prints by artist Stephen F. Condren, BFA-SAIC, of Condren Galleries, a Fine Arts Gallery, offering JPEG & PDF scans. I have categorized my Chicago skyline art into four groups: Watercolors, Pen & Inks, Drawings, and Oils.

Watercolors Of Chicago Skyline Art

Chicago skyline watercolor painting of near north side at sunset.
Chicago skyline watercolor at sunset.

Watercolors lend themselves naturally to architectural themes. This genre is the most popular and they sell very well. The beauty of watercolors is the fact that they are translucent and thus let other mediums show through. In the case of skyline art this is an excellent thing because of the linear nature of architectural draftsmanship. Thus with watercolor you get the best of both worlds. You have the fine line detail of the pen & inks and the robust special dimension of the watercolors making a wonderful offering.

Pen & Inks Of Chicago Skyline Art

Chicago skyline pen & ink drawing on Lake Shore Drive with John Hancock Center.
Chicago skyline pen & ink drawing.

Pen & inks are my favorite medium to use for skylines. I am immediately at home when I have the pen & ink in my hands. There is just something magical and pure about the way ink moves from the pen and onto the paper. Also, when it comes to creating architectural works of art the delineation of the ink is a perfect compliment to the subject.

Drawings Of Chicago Skyline Art

Chicago skyline pencil drawing of downtown at night.
Pencil drawing of Chicago skyline.

When I hold a pencil in my hand I feel as though I am a poet. The pencil is like magic for me, it just lets me put down what I am thinking immediately.

Oils Of Chicago Skyline Art

Chicago skyline oil painting at sunset
Oil painting of Chicago skyline at sunset.

Oils of the Chicago skyline can be a daunting task. There is so much architectural activity along side a lake that is as large as a sea, that it is hard to capture. No other medium is stronger than oils. When you compare the image of the skyline oil that you see before you with the others on this page you can see it’s strength.

Skyline Art Link:

Skyline Art

Related Links

Chicago skyline watercolors, Chicago skyline pen & inks, Chicago brown pen & ink drawing of near north side, Chicago skyline drawing with John Hancock Center

Stephen F. Condren ~ Artist

312-303-0207

School of the Art Institute of Chicago ~ BFA

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Chicago Skyline Pen & Ink Drawing Of East Randolph Street #050Z

Chicago skyline pen & ink drawing of east Randolph skyscrapers.

This article is about Chicago skyline #050Z Pen & Ink Drawing Of East Randolph Street, which is for sale at discount with prints by artist Stephen F. Condren, BFA-SAIC, of Condren Galleries, a Fine Arts Gallery, offering JPEG & PDF scans. This is my pen & ink drawing of the Chicago, Illinois, skyline at east Randolph Street.

Chicago Skyline Pen & Ink Drawing Of East Randolph Street #778. Key points of the drawing are as follows:

  • High Contrast.
  • Pen & Ink.
  • Elevation.
  1. High Contrast: What makes this drawing a success is properly utilizing negative space to give form to the images of the skyscrapers. Note how strongly and with great stealth the right side of the Aon Center anchor’s the center of the drawing giving it tremendous support. Because of this bold vertical line everything else falls into place.
  2. Pen & Ink: Nothing could better do the job of offering high contract images that pen & ink, if the very nature of it is “on and off”. In other words there is no in between when it comes to ink. You must use hatches and different line weights. To do pen & ink washes would be introducing a whole new topic which is not in the scope of this work.
  3. Elevation: I have chosen a low elevation so as to accommodate the height of the office towers. The view is looking north from Burnham Harbor, though this alignment of skyscrapers is long and thin it yields a massive cluster of office towers.

Chicago Skyline Pen & Inks Link

Chicago skyline pen & inks

Stephen F. Condren ~ Artist

312-303-0207

School of the Art Institute of Chicago ~ BFA

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Chicago Skyline Pen & Ink Drawing #049Z

Chicago skyline pen & ink drawing of east Randolph Street 777.

This article is about Chicago skyline #049Z pen & ink elevation drawing in perspective, which is for sale at discount with prints by artist Stephen F. Condren, BFA-SAIC, of Condren Galleries, a Fine Arts Gallery, offering JPEG & PDF scans. Most importantly this article is about my pen & ink drawing of east Randolph Street in Chicago, Illinois. Prints & Scans Of This Drawing #049Z ~ Order Here.

Chicago Skyline Drawing. Key points in the drawing are as follows:

  • Elevation.
  • Pen & Ink.
  • Contrast.
  1. Elevation: Because I have chosen a low elevation for the horizon line it will accommodate the height of the tall buildings. Because these are some of the tallest buildings in the world including Trump Tower, Aon Center, Two Prudential Plaza, and the John Hancock Center.
  2. Pen & Ink: Because the drawing is done with pen & ink that accommodate a high contrast in the imagery that I was looking for. A good amount of hatching is utilized in this drawing so as to keep the images architectonic in form. I have omitted all clouds so as to focus on the structures.
  3. Contrast: Most importantly, I am particularly pleased with the Prudential Building and the Aon Center. Because the beautiful white space enhances the structure of these giant. It must be understood that high contract must be used as an accent and not the rule for a drawing, that is why I have not reaped this used of negative space throughout the drawing.

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Chicago skyline pen & ink elevation drawing of east Randolph.

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Chicago skyline pen & inks

Stephen F. Condren ~ Artist

312-303-0207

School of the Art Institute of Chicago ~ BFA

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Chicago Skyline Pen & Ink Drawing #048Z

Chicago skyline pen & ink drawing of east Randolph Street.

This article is about Chicago skyline #048Z Pen & Ink Drawing #776, which is for sale at discount with prints by artist Stephen F. Condren, BFA-SAIC, of Condren Galleries, a Fine Arts Gallery, offering JPEG & PDF scans. This is my pen & ink drawing of the Chicago, Illinois, skyline at east Randolph Street.

Chicago Skyline Pen & Ink Drawing #776. Key features of this work of art are as follows:

  • Pen & Ink.
  • Elevation.
  1. Pen & Ink: The drawing is making use of black pen & ink and put down on paper in terms of using hatch lines to make the forms of the buildings. There is a heavy use of line work in this drawing leaving little room for “air”. The detailing of the skyscrapers has a complimenting affect on the cityscape all together. Bold lines are not seen here, but rather many fine lines that make up the bold look.
  2. Elevation: The elevation of this pen & ink drawing is low on the horizon line and looking north from Burham Harbor towards Randolph Street. The horizon is foreshortened here and you have both east Randolph Street and Lake Shore Drive under the trees in front of the skyscrapers. Among the skyscrapers you have Trump Tower, the Prudential Building, Two Prudential Plaza, the Aon Center, Blue Cross Blue Shield Tower, the Outer Drive East, and the John Hancock Center, an impressive array of very tall buildings in a very small space!

Chicago Skyline Pen & Inks Link

Chicago skyline pen & inks

Stephen F. Condren ~ Artist

312-303-0207

School of the Art Institute of Chicago ~ BFA